Spring is in the air! Take to the mountains of West Virginia for a spring break backpacking trip that will satisfy your desire for fresh air, bright skies and natural wonders.
Drive by quaint Lewisburg on U.S. 219 and make your first stop at Anthony for a brisk spring wade in Anthony Creek at the Blue Bend Recreation Area (Monongahela National Forest). Remember your fishing poles because this winding stream is a great place to wet your line for native trout. From Anthony, drive three miles up the winding gravel road to Hopkins Vista for a great view of the Greenbrier Valley.
Along the way to Hillsboro, you’ll see signs for Beartown and Droop Mountain State Parks. This an be part of your next trip to West Virginia the first is a fascinating natural wonder, the other a special Civil War heritage site.
Once you’re in Hillsboro, grab lunch at the Country Roads Café. The old store features live bluegrass music on the weekends and its shelves are loaded with books and relics from West Virginia’s country roads past. The homemade vegetable soup and apple pie are definite must eats.
Next, take a short drive down to Seebert, along the Greenbrier River. In tiny Seebert (gateway to enormous Watoga Sate Park) you stop at Jack Horner’s Corner to rent mountain bikes. Head out to West Virginia’s Millennium Trail along the Greenbrier River, the longest free-flowing river in the eastern United States. After your ride, enjoy dinner at Watoga Park restaurant, a favorite dining place for visitors near and far.
Check in at the Current Bed and Breakfast for an unforgettable night in theis cozy Hillsboro home where you can enjoy a whirlpool spa before going to bed. After a hearty breakfast at the Current, get ready for an exciting day in “The Mon,” as regulars call the nearly 1-million-acre Monongahela National Forest. Next, head north on 219 to to Marlinton. Stop by the Applachian Sport Store and get gear necessary for your three-day backpacking venture in the legendary Cranberry Wilderness.
With trail food, backpacks and tents ready, drive north on the Highlands Scenic Highway to the trailhead for the North-South Trail. You’ll be glad you packed warm clothes. Spring nights in this high-altitude wilderness area can be unexpectedly cold and snow is not out of the question.
Stop in Cranberry Mountain Nature Center for maps and information. Much of the area you’ll be visiting is part of a black bear sanctuary. It’s common for Cranberry backpackers to see the bears’ territorial scratchings on trees and signposts.
Throughout the journey, you’ll experience exceptional solitude and scenery. Spruce and hemlock trees are abundant near the beginning of the trail, along with huge thickets of rhododendron and laurel. You’ll also get to hop across rocks on a streambed on your second day of the wilderness hike. At the end of the third day, you loop back to your car.
Rest and reflect on your three-day adventure over a southern-style BBQ meal and live blues music at the Foxfire Grille, part of Snowshoe Mountain resort. As you view the wilderness from the almost mile-high resort, look to a cozy fire to complement the six styles of barbeque sauce and in-house smoked ribs.
After breakfast at Snowshoe the next morning, visit Green Bank for a free, guided tour of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory.
The Robert C. Byrd Telescope is the world’s largest fully steerable radio telescope. Larger tan a football field and taller than the Statue of Liberty, it listens for pulses deep from outer space.